Pinellas digest

School Board to vote on budget, tax rate

LARGO -- Pinellas School Board members will hold a public hearing and vote on the 2001-2002 budget at 7 p.m. today. The public hearing will be in the conference hall of the district administration building, 301 Fourth St. SW in Largo. Earlier this summer, the School Board voted to tentatively approve the proposed budget and cap the property tax rate at $8.49 for each $1,000 in taxable property value. If adopted, it would be a 0.7 percent increase from this year's rate of $8.43. With tonight's vote, board members are expected to set the tax rate at the cap. If that happens, someone with a $100,000 home with a $25,000 homestead exemption would pay about $636.75 for schools, up from about $632.25 last year. The school tax is just one part of your tax bill.

Trade guns for gift certificates Saturday

The Pinellas County Sheriff's Office and Largo Police Department are holding a countywide gun buyback program from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. Saturday. Residents can drop off an unwanted firearm at three locations in exchange for a $50 gift certificates for Beall's department stores and Winn Dixie supermarkets. "It's a pretty good investment," said Sheriff's Capt. Frank Holloway "If you take at least one gun off the street, we're saving at least one kid from getting shot." Last year's buyback effort with Largo and Gulfport police took in about 800 guns, a total Holloway hopes to match this year. Collection stations will be at the Sheriff's Office north district station at 737 Louden Ave. in Dunedin, its main office at 10750 Ulmerton Road in the Largo area and at the Largo Police Department at 201 Highland Ave. in Largo. Anyone interested in turning over unwanted guns is asked to place them in a container and store them safely when transporting them. For information, call Holloway at 582-6901.